The Winthrop McNair Research
Bulletin
Volume 2 The Winthrop McNair Research Bulletin
Volume 2
Article 10
2016
Creating Narratives through Art as Self-Definition
for Black Women
Shannon Snelgrove
Clemson University, [email protected]
Laura Gardner Ph.D.
Winthrop University, [email protected]
Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.winthrop.edu/wmrb
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Snelgrove, Shannon and Gardner, Laura Ph.D. (2016) "Creating Narratives through Art as Self-Definition for Black Women," The
Winthrop McNair Research Bulletin: Vol. 2, Article 10.
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Creating Narratives through Art as Self-Definition for Black Women
Shannon Snelgrove
Laura Gardner, Ph.D. (Mentor)
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to examine ways in which Black female artists have created narratives
through art as self-definition. These artists have responded to stereotypical stories and images of
Black women by creating self-defined stories and images. This study specifically focused on Faith
Ringgold because she has combined narrative and visual art in story quilts that present Black women
as empowered, multidimensional people. Her story quilt Who’s Afraid of Aunt Jemima reclaims the
narrative of the stereotypical Black mammy character, Jemima. Ringgold depicts Jemima as a
liberated, dynamic entrepreneur and family woman. In creating positive characterizations of Black
women, Ringgold does not flatten her characters. They are rounded with all the complexities that
come with being human.
Themes of self-definition were further investigated through narrative inquiry of biographies of
twenty-five notable Black women artists of the twentieth century. The artists are from a variety of
time periods within the twentieth century and include painters, sculptors, collage artists, fabric
artists, and photographers. Their biographies were thematically analyzed. Findings showed that
about half of the artists clearly intended to express self-definition through their art in response to
stereotypes of Black women. The overwhelming majority of this half were not only concerned with
creating an image of self, but also with depicting Black women in general in a positive light,
illustrating them as diverse, complex people.
womanhood—Aunt Jemima (Figure 3). Aunt
Jemima was a mammy figure used as the face of
a pancake mix (Morgan, 1995). She existed
beyond the box. Smith (1999) points out that “a
systematic effort was made to give Aunt Jemima
a personal history and make her a ‘real southern
cook’” (p. 351). Aunt Jemima’s portrayal as a
one-dimensional happy servant “obscured the
reality of Black people’s lives” (Ritterhouse,
2009, p. 185). With her story quilt, Ringgold
changes the narrative. She develops the
protagonist,
Jemima
Blakey,
as
a
multidimensional empowered businesswoman
(Ringgold, 1996). Accordingly, Hudson (1995)
suggests that “understanding the power of
image to construe a social reality,” Black artists
have taken on the work to “convey Black life
more realistically” (pp. 136-137).
The identification of themes of selfdefinition in Faith Ringgold’s work led to
narrative inquiry of stories of other Black
women artists.
BACKGROUND
Self-definition is especially important
for Black women because they experience the
intersecting oppressions of racism and sexism
(Copeland, 1977), which both contribute to the
creation and perpetuation of controlling images
of Black womanhood (Collins, 2000). According
to Collins (2000), rather than accepting these
images, Black women have “crafted identities
designed to empower them[selves]” (pp. 97-98).
Hood (2001) suggests there is a long
tradition of Black women who have used the
arts to express self-definition. Faith Ringgold
(Figure 1), who makes story quilts telling her
lived experience and larger stories of Black
women (Koppman, 1991), stood out to me
among the Black women artists I researched as
the one who speaks most directly to the
importance of self-definition through narrative
and art.
In her story quilt, Who’s Afraid of Aunt
Jemima (Figure 2), Ringgold (1996) deals directly
with a controlling image of Black
51
Figure 1
Figure 2
52
Figure 3
53
METHODS
The methods for this study are based
on narrative inquiry, which is “a way of
understanding experience…the stories of the
experiences that make up people’s lives…stories
lived and told” (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000, p.
20). I applied narrative inquiry by reading and
thematically analyzing biographies of twentyfive of the most prominent Black women artists
of the twentieth century. These biographies
came from “African American Women Artists,”
a section of the book Women Artists of Color: A
Bio-Critical Sourcebook to 20th Century Artists in the
Americas (Farris, Kramer, & Wasserman, 1999).
“This book attempts to provide a representative
sample of older and/or deceased artists who
helped pave the way for future generations;
mature, midcareer mainstream artists with
national/international reputations; and younger,
emerging artists” (Farris, 1999, p. xiv). The
artists include painters, sculptors, collage artists,
fabric artists, and photographers.
I counted the number of the artists’
biographies that fit into two themes. The
biography had to meet Theme One to be
considered for Theme Two. Theme One is
“artist rejects stereotypes and uses empowering
images of self as a primary subject matter in her
art.” Theme Two is “artist’s intention is not
only to portray herself, but to portray Black
women at large in a positive light.” For the
theme to be counted, the biographer had to
clearly state that theme; I did not leave it to my
own interpretation.
Themes found in biographies of 25 of the most
prominent Black women artists of the 20th
century
Theme
Number of
biographies
1. Artist rejects stereotypes 13 out of 25
and uses empowering
images of self as a primary
subject matter in her art.
2. Artist’s intention is not 12 out of 13
only to portray herself, but
to portray Black women at
large in a positive light.
(Must meet Theme One in
order to be considered for
Theme Two.)
DISCUSSION
Considering the endless variety of
subject matters that art can contain, the fact that
thirteen out of twenty-five of the artists actively
rejected stereotypes and used empowered
images of self as a primary subject matter is
significant. The overwhelming majority of the
artists who used images of self as a primary
subject matter did so not only to portray
themselves, but also to convey a positive image
of Black women as a whole. These artists have
created their own sense of self via artistic
narratives, and have also attempted to redefine
the identity of their people.
It may seem counterproductive for one
to attempt to define the identity of Black people
as a whole in the name of self-definition.
However, the artists represented in this research
did not declare a single overarching Black
identity. They presented complex narratives of
multidimensional Blackness. They did not
attempt to box people into one identity; they
offered many possibilities of what Blackness can
look like in response to pervasive stereotypical
narratives.
This research is a starting point for
further inquiry into the empowerment of
women and people of color through art.
Through this project, I have been exposed to
concerns, challenges, and intentions of artists
who use their art as a medium of self-definition.
I am now prepared to interview, survey, and
RESULTS
Out of the total of twenty-five artist
biographies, thirteen fit Theme One: “artist
rejects stereotypes and uses empowering images
of self as a primary subject matter in her art.”
Out of the thirteen biographies that fit Theme
One, twelve fit Theme Two: “artist’s intention
is not only to portray herself, but to portray
Black women at large in a positive light.”
54
hold focus groups with contemporary women
artists and artists of color who make selfdefinition a primary focus of their work.
by M.M. Manning. The Journal of
Interdisciplinary History, 30(2), 350-352.
REFERENCES
Clandinin, D.J., & Connelly, F.M. (2000).
Narrative inquiry: Experience and story in
qualitative research. San Francisco: JosseyBase Publishers.
Collins, P.H. (2000). The power of selfdefinition. In Black feminist thought (pp.
97-121). New York: Routledge.
Copeland, E. J. (1977). Counseling Black
women
with
negative
selfconcepts. Personnel
&
Guidance
Journal, 55(7), 397-400.
Farris, P. (1999). Introduction. In P. Farris
(Ed.), Women artists of color (pp. xiii-xx).
Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing
Group, Inc.
Farris, P., Kramer, K., & Wasserman, N. (1999).
African American women artists. In P.
Farris (Ed.), Women artists of color (pp.
231-371). Westport, CT: Greenwood
Publishing Group, Inc.
Hood, Y. (2001). The culture of resistance:
African American art quilts and self
defining. Uncoverings, 22, 141-169.
Hudson, B.A. (1995). Images used by AfricanAmericans
to
combat
negative
stereotypes. In H.W. Harris, H.C. Blue,
& E.E.H. Griffith (Eds.), Racial and
ethnic identity (pp. 135-172). New York:
Routledge.
Koppman,
D.
(1991).
Odyssey
of
Faith. Woman's Art Journal, 12(2), 40-42.
Morgan, J. (1995). Mammy the huckster: Selling
the old south for the new century.
American Art, 9(1), 86-109.
Ringgold, F., Freeman, L., & Roucher, N.
(1996). Talking to Faith Ringgold. New
York: Crown Publishers.
Ritterhouse, J. (2009). Reviewed work: Clinging
to mammy: The faithful slave in
twentieth-century America by Micki
McElya. The Journal of Southern History,
75(1), 184-185.
Smith, G.L. (1999). Reviewed work: Slave in a
box: The strange career of Aunt Jemima
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